Vacuum technology
Oil-Lubricated Rotary Vane
The workhorse of deeper rough vacuum.
Schematic section, not to scale
How it works
Oil-lubricated (oil-flooded or oil-sealed) rotary vane pumps use oil to seal, cool and lubricate the vanes. They reach deeper vacuum than dry vane pumps and are widely used in packaging, thermoforming and general industry.
The same rotor-and-vane principle as a dry vane pump, with oil injected to seal clearances. An exhaust separator recovers oil from the discharged gas and returns it to a reservoir.
Performance range
Typically to about 0.1-2 mbar(a) ultimate in single-stage industrial designs
Typical industry range. Exact capability is model specific, see each model’s curve.
In the catalogue · 622 models from 21 manufacturers
- Pumping speed
- 1.5 – 6,360 m³/h · 450 models
- Motor power
- 0.09 – 180 kW · 392 models
- Weight
- 5.17 – 6,850 kg · 260 models
- Ultimate pressure
- 0.0001 – 100 mbar · 256 models
- Noise level
- 42 – 90 dB(A) · 207 models
- Max. vacuum
- 0.00507 – 3 mbar · 42 models
- Max. pressure
- 0.345 – 1.03 bar · 10 models
Spread of each model’s own rated figure, as published by its manufacturer.
Advantages & tradeoffs
- Deep, stable vacuum
- Good tolerance of continuous duty
- Broad size range
- Oil changes and exhaust filters
- Possible oil mist if separators are neglected
- Condensable vapours can contaminate oil
Best applications
Common in Packaging, Food + Beverage, Plastics, Medical, Automotive, Metalworking.
Maintenance
Oil and oil-filter changes, exhaust separator replacement, inlet filter care, gas-ballast use for vapours.
Energy characteristics
Specific-energy comparisons (kW per unit of flow at your operating point) appear here as sourced performance curves are added. Until then, compare models directly on the Performance Map.
Open the Performance Map